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Gewandhaus
Gewandhaus is a concert hall in Leipzig, the home of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Today's hall is the third to bear this name; like the second, it is noted for its fine acoustics. History The first Gewandhaus (''Altes Gewandhaus'') The first concert hall was constructed in 1781 by architect Johann Carl Friedrich Dauthe inside the ''Gewandhaus'', a building used by cloth (garment) merchants. Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 (The Emperor Concerto) premiered here in 1811. Felix Mendelssohn is particularly associated with the first Gewandhaus, of which he was director from 1835. Other well-known works which premiered at the Altes Gewandhaus include: * Schubert's Great Symphony (21 March 1839, posth.) * Schumann's Spring Symphony (31 March 1841) * Mendelssohn's Scottish Symphony (3 March 1842) * Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto (13 March 1845) * Wagner's overture to ''The Mastersingers of Nuremberg'' (2 June 1862; the full opera was not performed until 1868) * Brahms' '' A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra
The Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra (Gewandhausorchester; also previously known in German as the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig) is a German symphony orchestra based in Leipzig, Germany. The orchestra is named after the concert hall in which it is based, the Gewandhaus ("Garment House"). In addition to its concert duties, the orchestra also performs frequently in the Thomaskirche and as the official opera orchestra of the Leipzig Opera. History The orchestra's origins can be traced to 1743, when a society called the ''Grosses Concert'' began performing in private homes. In 1744 the ''Grosses Concert'' moved its concerts to the "Three Swans" Tavern. Their concerts continued at this venue for 36 years, until 1781. In 1780, because of complaints about concert conditions and audience behavior in the tavern, the mayor and city council of Leipzig offered to renovate one story of the Gewandhaus (the building used by textile merchants) for the orchestra's use. The motto ''Res severa est ver ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rudolf Skoda
Felix Rudolf Skoda (26 September 1931 – 2 April 2015) was a German architect and academic teacher. He was chief architect for the Neue Gewandhaus in Leipzig. Life Born in Leipzig, Skoda was the son of the painter and graphic artist Felix Skoda. After taking his Abitur at the in 1950, he completed a two-year apprenticeship as a bricklayer. From 1952 to 1957, he studied architecture at the Hochschule für Architektur und Bauwesen Weimar. He was then a research assistant at the universities in Weimar and Cottbus. He was awarded a Dr.-Ing. in 1968 in Weimar with the thesis ''Wohnhäuser und Wohnverhältnisse der Stadtarmut'' (Dwellings and Housing Conditions of the Urban Poor). In 1986, he completed his Habilitation. From 1960 to 1975, he worked as a design architect in Leipzig's project planning offices, designing several buildings that were characteristic of Leipzig's cityscape. In 1976, he became chief architect at the construction staff of the of Leipzig.: ''Leipzig. Arc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Leipzig
Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as well as the second most populous city in the area of the former East Germany after ( East) Berlin. Together with Halle (Saale), the city forms the polycentric Leipzig-Halle Conurbation. Between the two cities (in Schkeuditz) lies Leipzig/Halle Airport. Leipzig is located about southwest of Berlin, in the southernmost part of the North German Plain (known as Leipzig Bay), at the confluence of the White Elster River (progression: ) and two of its tributaries: the Pleiße and the Parthe. The name of the city and those of many of its boroughs are of Slavic origin. Leipzig has been a trade city since at least the time of the Holy Roman Empire. The city sits at the intersection of the Via Regia and the Via Imperii, two important medie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Städtisches Kaufhaus
The Städtisches Kaufhaus in Leipzig, designed by Rayher, Korber and Müller, was constructed from 1894 to 1901. Site history prior to Städtisches Kaufhaus This piece of land and architectural monument reflects 500 years of Leipzig's inner city's history of trading and culture. In the years 1477 to 1498 the first Gewandhaus (garb-house) was constructed there at the so-called Gewandgäßchen and Universitätsstraße. Due to the imperial fair privilege from 1497 Leipzig quickly became very important as an emporium. The Gewandhaus was home to foreign cloth merchants and also hosted the Zeughaus (armory). After nearly 250 years of utilisation the first Gewandhaus was torn down and from 1740 to 1744 replaced by the municipal library, which was erected in baroque manner and again hosted an armory (in its east wing). Many parts can still be recognised in today's building. In 1780/1781 the armory was reconstructed into a concert hall, which was the first permanent home the Gewandhaus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kurt Masur
Kurt Masur (18 July 1927 – 19 December 2015) was a German conductor. Called "one of the last old-style maestros", he directed many of the principal orchestras of his era. He had a long career as the Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, and also served as music director of the New York Philharmonic. He left many recordings of classical music played by major orchestras. Masur is also remembered for his actions to support peaceful demonstrations in the 1989 anti-government demonstrations in Leipzig; the protests were part of the events leading up to the fall of the Berlin wall. Biography Masur was born in Brieg, Lower Silesia, Germany (now Brzeg, Poland), and studied piano, composition and conducting in Leipzig, Saxony. His father was an electrical engineer, and as a young boy he completed an electrician's apprenticeship; he occasionally worked in his father's shop. From ages 10 to 16, he took piano lessons with Katharina Hartmann. In October 1944 the Nazis annou ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Arthur Nikisch
Arthur Nikisch (12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungarian conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London, Leipzig and—most importantly—Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter of the music of Bruckner, Tchaikovsky, Beethoven and Liszt. Johannes Brahms praised Nikisch's performance of his Fourth Symphony as "quite exemplary, it's impossible to hear it any better." Biography Arthur Augustinus Adalbertus Nikisch was born in Mosonszentmiklós, Hungary, to a Hungarian father and a mother from Moravia. Nikisch began his studies at the Vienna Conservatory in 1866. There he studied under the composer Felix Otto Dessoff, the conductor Johann von Herbeck, and the violinist Joseph Hellmesberger, Jr. and won prizes for composition and performance on violin and piano. He was engaged as a violinist in the Vienna Philharmonic, and also played in the Bayreuth Festival orchestra in its inaugural season of 1876. He achieved most of hi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto
Felix Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64, is his last concerto. Well received at its premiere, it has remained among the most prominent and highly-regarded violin concertos. It holds a central place in the violin repertoire and has developed a reputation as an essential concerto for all aspiring concert violinists to master, and usually one of the first Romantic era concertos they learn.Mendelssohn, F. ''Violin Concerto in E minor, Op. 64'', Dover Miniature Scores (1999) A typical performance lasts just under half an hour. Mendelssohn originally proposed the idea of the violin concerto to Ferdinand David, a close friend and then concertmaster of the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. Although conceived in 1838, the work took another six years to complete and was not premiered until 1845. During this time, Mendelssohn maintained a regular correspondence with David, who gave him many suggestions. The work itself was one of the foremost violin concertos of the Romantic era ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the United States in 1939. He worked closely with Gustav Mahler, whose music he helped to establish in the repertory, held major positions with the Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Concertgebouw Orchestra, Salzburg Festival, Vienna State Opera, Bavarian State Opera, Staatsoper Unter den Linden and Deutsche Oper Berlin, among others, made recordings of historical and artistic significance, and is widely considered to be one of the great conductors of the 20th century. Biography Early life Born near Alexanderplatz in Berlin to a middle-class Jewish family, he began his musical education at the Stern Conservatory at the age of eight, making his first public appearance as a pianist when he was nine; he performe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wilhelm Furtwängler
Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major influence for many later conductors, and his name is often mentioned when discussing their interpretative styles. Furtwängler was principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic between 1922 and 1945, and from 1952 until 1954. He was also principal conductor of the Gewandhaus Orchestra (1922–26), and was a guest conductor of other major orchestras including the Vienna Philharmonic. Although not an adherent of Nazism, he was the leading conductor to remain in Germany during the Nazi regime. Despite his open opposition to antisemitism and the ubiquity of Nazi symbolism, the regime did not seek to suppress him, at Joseph Goebbels' insistence, for propaganda reasons. This situation caused lasting controversy, and the extent to which his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Emperor Concerto
The Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 73, known as the Emperor Concerto in English-speaking countries, is a concerto composed by Ludwig van Beethoven for piano and orchestra. Beethoven composed the concerto in 1809 under salary in Vienna, and he dedicated it to Archduke Rudolf, who was his patron, friend, and pupil. Its public premiere was on 28 November 1811 in Leipzig, with Friedrich Schneider as the soloist and Johann Philipp Christian Schulz conducting the Gewandhaus Orchestra. Beethoven, usually the soloist, could not perform due to declining hearing. The work's military aspects and symbolism characterize its heroic style. Beethoven used novel approaches with the piece, such as beginning the solo entrance without orchestral introduction, lengthening the concerto, and creating a new relationship between piano and orchestra. The first of its three movements, Allegro, is in sonata form and is longer than any opening movement of Beethoven's earlier piano concertos. Th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Felix Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include symphonies, concertos, piano music, organ music and chamber music. His best-known works include the overture and incidental music for ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' (which includes his " Wedding March"), the '' Italian Symphony'', the ''Scottish Symphony'', the oratorio '' St. Paul'', the oratorio '' Elijah'', the overture '' The Hebrides'', the mature Violin Concerto and the String Octet. The melody for the Christmas carol " Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" is also his. Mendelssohn's '' Songs Without Words'' are his most famous solo piano compositions. Mendelssohn's grandfather was the renowned Jewish philosopher Moses Mendelssohn, but Felix was initially raised without religion. He was baptised at the age of seven, becoming a Reformed Chr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Augustusplatz
The Augustusplatz is a square located at the east end of the city centre of Leipzig, borough Leipzig-Mitte. It is the city's largest square and one of the largest (and, prior to almost all its buildings being destroyed in bombing in the Second World War, the most beautiful) squares in Europe. It is also part of the city's inner-city ring-road and a central hub for its tram network. History The history of today's square began in 1785 on a site within the city walls as the Platz vor dem Grimmaischen Tor to designs by the city architect Johann Carl Friedrich Dauthe. It was renamed Augustusplatz in 1839 after Frederick Augustus, the first king of Saxony. In 1928 the social-democratic city government renamed it '' Karl-Marx-Platz'', though this name proved unpopular and was ignored even in newspaper articles and town plans. In 1933 the Nazis renamed it Augustusplatz, then in 1953 it became Karl-Marx-Platz again, and finally in 1990 (on the day of German reunification) it returned to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
